drastic temperature change

I would like some opinions on my experience.
Last night I was driving home from work at 9:30.
I drive about 25 miles in rural area to get home.
The temperature on my gauge in the car was at 36 degrees.
I was driving along this little country road and looked up at the temp,
it said 16 degrees. There is no way it was 16 degrees in Ohio last night.
I was really freaked out at this point. I went on, it started to rise up to 19 degrees.
about 5 miles from the point I first noticed the temp. It shot up to 43.
By the time I got home, about 10 more miles, it was back to 36 degrees.
This happened once before on this road about a year ago.
I didn't think much of it then, but twice?
I AM FREAKED

I think I must state the obvious, so please understand this is not to make you look foolish, but have you had the car's external thermometer checked by the dealer? Could be some fault of the wires or the on-board chip that interprets the signal.

"So even if you can't see it, you can still believe in it.It's easier if you lose all the things that prevent you from seeing it."-The Resistance by the Sam Roberts Band

Columns of cold air happen, I have seen this as a pilot and also hiking in the mountains. I live in a rural area, it is typically 10 degrees cooler than the city, I am next to. The city acts as a "heat sink" holding heat. The green rural area, "dumps" the heat of the day much more quickly, this is most evident at night.

Interests:Serious Research and separating the truth from the hype in the paranormal field today.

Posted 24 March 2010 - 08:20 PM

Maybe an even simpler explanation. You were driving, is it possible that moisture or water was splashed near or on the sensor? As such moisture evaporated it could easily pull the surface temperature down. Once dry the evaporation would cease and a true air temperature reading would again be made.

Electronic gauges shifting somewhat rapidly without provocation can definitely be creepy, but I tend to side with the previous posters on this matter... there is most likely a scientific explanation for the occurrence. It is definitely strange how this happened twice, at two different points in time, at the same place... if you're not completely convinced that this occurrence is machine malfunction, you could take some steps in order to validate or invalidate your belief...

1.) have your temperature sensors checked out.
2.) go back to the spot in a different vehicle and see if something similar happens.
3.) perform random temperature readings of the area.
4.) look up the history of the area to see if anything strange happened there.

those are only a few of the many things that you can do to test what is going on with that particular spot... you can actually turn that short experience into a fun project. i definitely believe in the paranormal, but i do try to rule out any known or scientific reason for something before i assume that the experience is "otherworldly" (mostly so I don't scare myself, lol). hope this helps!